Silent Protector
by geurudo
Summary: A mysterious black unicorn is found passed out just outside of Everfree Forest. When he wakes up, his lack of talking leads others to come to the conclusion that he is mute. Join Twilight and friends to discover this unicorn's past and what secrets he seems to be hiding. Disclaimer: I only own my OC not any MLP characters. They belong to Hasbro
1. Chapter 1

**This is my very first story and upload so i would like any advice that people are willing to give. I would also like your honest opinions on my story.  
_**

Chapter 1: Appearance

It was a warm summer's day when it all started. A yellow pegasus with a pink main had just walked out of her house to feed some animals when she noticed a black pony unconscious on the ground near the forest. She ran to the pony's side to find that he was a unicorn and that had no visible injuries but would not wake up no matter what she tried. She didn't know what to do so she picked him up and flew him to the hospital.

"Nurse Redheart, Nurse Redheart," the pegasus called out in her quiet voice as she entered the hospital carrying an unconscious pony in her hooves.

"What's wrong Fluttershy?" a white mare with pink hair asked while turning towards the door. When she seen what all of the commotion was about, she immediately started giving out orders."I need some extra ponies and a stretcher in here." Two other doctors rushed in with a stretcher and laid the unconscious pony on it.

"Fluttershy, what happened to him?" Nurse Redheart asked Fluttershy as they followed the doctors into the emergency room.

"I don't know. I just found him like this. I tried to see what was wrong but I didn't see anything wrong." Fluttershy replied with a sad look upon her face.

"It's going to be alright Fluttershy, we will take it from here." Nurse Redheart said to try to calm Fluttershy down.

"A, Are you sure?" Fluttershy asked as she reverted back to her usual quite demeanor.

"Positive." Nurse Redheart said with a smile on her face.

Two Months Later (?'s POV)

"I don't know what to tell you, all of his vitals were fine when he was admitted and they have stayed that way during his entire stay. Even after running a multitude of tests on him, we can't find anything wrong with him. All we can do now is wait for him to wake up." A male voice tried to explain to someone.

"But if he won't wake up, how can I throw him the bestest welcome party ever?" asked a female voice who was clearly annoyed.

"He will wake up eventually, so just give him some time to rest. You can throw him a party after he wakes up, ok?" the male voice explained to the female voice.

After a brief silence the female voice said in a very happy tune,"Okie Dokie Lokie."

Later That Night (Narrator's POV)

A doctor walked in to the room of an unconscious black unicorn to check his vitals again. He immediately noticed the patient was drenched in sweat and that his heart rate was rapidly rising.

"Nurse Redheart, come quick." The doctor yelled down the hall. Nurse Redheart dashed into the room a moment later as she had been just a few rooms down cleaning up a mess.

"This is not good. We need to get his heart rate down before it ruptures from the stress." She practically yelled as she ran over to him. But, before she could touch him, he bolted upright in bed earing a shocked gasp from both Nurse Redheart and the other doctor.

"N, N, Nurse Redheart," the doctor stammered, "L, L, Look at his eyes."

Nurse Redheart did as the doctor asked but she was not prepared for what she saw. This pony did not have eyes like anypony else she knew. His eyes were those of a dragon and were a dark red that gave him a demonic appearance. Nurse Redheart was speechless, but then she noticed something else about them. His eyes were completely unfocused as if he was staring at something that did not exist. He then collapsed back onto the bed and fell asleep while his heart rate returned to normal.

The Next Morning (?'s POV)

I awoke to the sounds of hooves hitting the floor and someone talking. I opened my eyes but was not expecting to see someone else's big, blue eyes right in front of me. I panicked and tried to run away only to end up triping into the wall next to my bed. When I recovered from the fall, I looked up to see who had startled me, only it wasn't what I expected. There were four ponies in front of me. The one on the bed I had just been in was light pink in color with a dark pink main and tail. The two who were closest to the door were yellow with pink hair and light purple with dark purple hair that had a pink highlight through it. Finally, on the other side of the bed, was a white pony with pink hair and what looked to be a nurse's hat on top of its head.

At this time, the pink one hopped down from the bed and approached the me. She looked at me curiously for a moment, then she smiled and said, "You're weird, but I like everypony so we can friends. By the way I'm Pinkie Pie and I throw the bestest parties ever so I'm going to go through you the biggest welcome party ever. Bye." With that said, she ran out the door before I could even register what just happened. A moment later though, the realization hit me and all I could do was stare at the rest of them in shock.

After my initial shock wore off though, I tried to stand up but my foot slipped out from under me and I fell back down. The white pony then ran over to me, picked me up, and set me back down on the bed. She then proceeded to tell me, "You shouldn't be getting out of the like that. You were just in a two month long coma and some of your muscles won't respond properly. You should take things slow until you are used to moving around again."

The purple pony then walked up to me. "Hello, my name is Twilight Sparkle and this is my friend Fluttershy," Twilight said pointing with her hoof at the yellow pony behind her who hid her face behind her mane. "She is the one who found you passed out by Everfree Forest and brought you here so that Nurse Redheart," Twilight continued this time pointing at the white pony, "could treat you." The entire time Twilight was introducing all of them and explaining everything, I just looked at her in horror.

I thought to myself, "This can't be real. Ponies can't talk, they just walk around and eat grass. I must be dreaming, I know I will just pinch myself and wa…" it was at time point that I looked down only to find that I didn't have hands anymore. Instead of my hands I had hooves.

The sudden shock of realizing that he was no longer human caused him to pass out, much to the shock of the ponies in the room with him.

?'s Flashback

I was sitting in the park on a bench when it happened.

"Pat, Pat, look at what I found," yelled a little black haired girl in a green dress as she ran up to me.

"What is it Nel?" I asked her.

"It's a black butterfly." Nel said proudly while opening up her hands. In her hands, there was a solid black butterfly that slowly moved its wings up and down.

I patted her on the head and told her, "Well at least you didn't bring back a spider this time. You know how much a hate them."

Nel laughed and said back to me, "Yeah, whenever you see a spider you always…." Nel cut off as a massive explosion went off not far outside of the park.

I picked Nel up ran as fast I could back to our house. Our house wasn't too far away from the park and it was on the side opposite of the explosion. When I arrived I set Nel down on her bed and turned on the TV. It was then that I first seen them.

Present Time (Narrator's POV)

Nurse Redheart couldn't figure out why the unicorn had passed out like he had but she assumed that it was the stress of waking up after being in a coma and not knowing where you are.

She looked over at Twilight and Fluttershy. Twilight had stopped talking when she realized that the one she had passed out. Nurse Redheart then spoke up, "Twilight, Fluttershy, why don't you both leave and let him rest. He has a lot to deal with right now without you asking him a bunch of questions. I will let you know when he is up and about again. Then you can ask him questions."

Twilight reluctantly left when she said that, and when she did she was mubbling something about his "eyes." Fluttershy followed after Twilight soon after.

Nurse Redheart sighed and said to herself, "This is going to be a busy week."

Later That Night

After Pat had reawakened, Nurse Redheart offered to help him relearn how to walk. She explained to him that his muscules had deteriorated due to his long stay at the hospital so he would have to build them back up slowly. He accepted her offer with a nod of his head. He then thought to himself, "I should also use this time to get used seeing talking ponies and to learn as much as I can to fit in. I wouldn't want to freak them out by telling them that I'm not actually a pony. They might think that I am crazy, or worse, they might try to kill me."

Four Days Later

It was hard work, but Pat had managed to be able to walk in only four days and it was all thanks to Nurse Redheart. During those four days however, Nurse Redheart came to the assumption that he was mute because no matter what she said or asked him, he would only answer her with a nod of his head or give her a curious stare. On the other hand, if she would ask about his family or where he was from, he would stop what he was doing and cry. She wanted to know why but she refrained from asking him since he would never speak.

As Pat was now fully recovered and able to walk on his own, it was finally time for him to leave the hospital. Nurse Redheart walked into Pat's room to tell him the good news. "You have been making such great progress in your rehabilitation that you are going to be released today. Do you have anywhere to go when you leave?" Nurse Red heart asked. Pat looked up from the book he was reading and shook his head no. Nurse Redheart looked a little dismayed at this but perked back up after thinking for a few seconds.

"I know, I can ask Twilight if you can stay with her for the time being. Would that be alright with you?" To this, Pat nodded. "Well then, I'll go see if that would be alright with her," and with that, Nurse Redheart walked out of the hospital and started towards Twilight's house.

A few minutes later, Nurse Redheart arrived at Twilight's house. It looked like a giant tree house. Nurse Redheart knocked on door to the house. From inside she could hear she yell out, "Coming!" A few seconds later, the door opened up and a purple dragon with green spikes down his spine stepped out. "Hello Spike," Nurse Redheart greeted the dragon, "May I please talk to Twilight for a moment?'

"Hold on," Spike said as he stepped back into the house. "Twilight, Nurse Redheart wants to speak with you!" Nurse Redheart could hear someone scrambling around for a minute before the door opened again.

Twilight poked her head out and greeted Nurse Redheart. "Is there something you needed?"

"Yes there is. That unicorn that Fluttershy found has completely recovered and he is ready to be released but he has nowhere to go. I was wondering if he could stay here with you for the time being." She asked Twilight.

Twilight thought for a moment and then answered, "Yes that would be alright with me. It would also give me a chance to learn some more about him."

"I'm afraid that might not be possible. You see, he is mute so he can only answer yes or no questions." Nurse Redheart informed Twilight.

"Oh," Twilight said in shock to this new information, "Well, bring him over later tonight so that Pinkie Pie and I can prepare something special for him."

"One of Pinkie Pie's signature Welcome to Ponyville Parties?" Nurse Redheart guessed.

"You know it. Just be sure not to tell him." Twilight said smiling.

"I wouldn't want to ruin his first surprise party here in Ponyville." Nurse Redheart remarked. Then both Nurse Redheart and Twilight busted out laughing.

Later That Night

"Well, here we are." Nurse Redheart exclaimed to the unicorn that was following her. "This is where you will be staying until you find a place of your own. Well go on in and enjoy your time here."

Pat walked up to the door and opened it. All the lights were off so he couldn't see anything or anyone. He took a few cautious steps in when all of a sudden…

"SURPRISE!" everyone shouted as the lights turned on. Pat was stunned. He didn't know what to do. Then he did the first thing that came to mind.

He ran away.

**What is the story of Pat's past?  
Why won't he talk to anyone?  
Why did he run away?  
Where is he planning on going?  
Find out all this and more next chapter.**


	2. Chapter 2

Pat's POV

I ran.

I was so scared that all I could do was run. I have always been deathly afraid of being in the spotlight. For me running is the only thing that I could do, so I ran. I couldn't go back now. Not after what I just did.

I was running through the center of the town they called Ponyville. I had no idea where I was going. I glanced around trying to find someplace I could hide and feel safe. That's when I saw it, the forest. Nurse Redheart had mentioned that no one enters the forest because it was too dangerous. It would be perfect.

I ran straight for the forest. At the edge of the forest, I tripped over something that felt extremely sharp. I stood back up and looked to see what it was exactly. It was my swords. They are twin katanas that had no guards. One of the swords was pitch black while the other was snow white.

I walked over and picked them up in my mouth. I then proceeded to go deeper into the forest.

Narrator's POV

Back at Twilight's house, everypony was standing around just staring out the door at what just happened. Pinkie Pie was the first pony to speak up. "Why did he run away? Is this a game?"

Twilight turned to Pinkie Pie and replied, "I don't know Pinkie Pie. It looked as though he was scared of something. I wonder what it was."

Pinkie Pie thought for a minute then her expression became sad and her normally poofy hair flattened out. "He must hate my parties then." She said on the verge of tears.

"Nopony hates your parties Pinkie Pie." Said a light blue pegasus with a rainbow mane and tail as she walked up to Pinkie Pie. She then put a hoof around her to try to comfort the mare. "I'll go find him and make him tell us why." At the pegasus tried to bolt out the door only to be stopped by Twilight's magic.

"Not so fast Rainbow Dash. I agree with going to find him, but you won't be getting many answers out of him." Twilight said she set Rainbow Dash down with her magic.

"Well, why not," replied Rainbow Dash with the annoyance at being stopped clear in her voice.

"It's because he is mute." Twilight said which caused everypony else, except Nurse Redheart and Pinkie Pie, to gasp.

Pinkie Pie looked at Twilight curiously and asked, "What is a mute?"

At this, a white unicorn with a purple mane and tail stepped up and explained, "Darling, a mute is somepony who is unable to speak."

"That's horrible. I would go crazy if I couldn't speak to anypony." Pinkie Pie exclaimed in horror.

"Thanks for explaining that Rarity, but we really should go find him. He's not from around here so he might not know about how dangerous Everfree Forest is. Let's go find him girls and leave no stone unturned." Twilight said and her friends all agreed before running out into the night to find Pat.

Pat's POV

I have been running around these woods for a while now trying to find someplace that I could stay for a few hours to calm down. I had been running in a relatively straight path so that I could easily get back to Ponyville later. After another ten minutes of running, I stumbled across what looked like a hollowed out tree. Upon closer inspection, I realized that it was a bunch of smaller trees growing together.

I approached the entrance slowly so that I could see if anything was using this as their home. I peeked around the edge to see that was nothing inside and that it looked as though nothing had lived there for quite some time.

I thought to myself, "This will be a perfect place to stay for a while. I just need to find some materials to make a bed, a blanket, and a door." I then proceeded to look for the materials nearby.

An hour later I had returned to my "tree house" with everything I needed to make a camp. The next thing I needed to do was figure out how to put everything together without the use of his hands.

Narrator's POV

Twilight and her friends had split up to cover more ground. They each had a section of the town they would search but after a few hours, everypony except Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy had gone back to Twilight's house to see if anypony had any luck.

"Did anypony find any trace of him?" Twilight asked the others.

"No." Her friends replied in unison.

"Ok, why don't Applejack and I go check on Pinkie Pie and you two go check on Fluttershy." Twilight said to Rarity, Rainbow Dash, and an orange mare with yellow mane and tail with a cowboy hat on who was apparently Applejack.

After they had left, it took Twilight and Applejack only a few minutes to find Pinkie Pie. She was lying on the ground behind Sugarcube Corner, the sweets shop that she worked at. When they got close to Pinkie Pie, she lifted her head and looked at them.

"Pinkie Pie, what in tarnation are you doin'?" Applejack asked Pinkie Pie.

Pinkie Pie looked at Applejack with a confused look and said, "I'm doing exact what Twilight told me to. I just didn't know it would take this long to flip over so many rocks."

After hearing this, both Applejack and Twilight facehoofed. "Pinkie Pie, 'leave no stone unturned' just means to look everywhere not go around and actually flip over all the stones." Twilight explained.

"Oh, that makes so much more sense. I thought it was weird that you wanted us flip rocks when we were supposed to be looking for that unicorn." Pinkie Pie said with a smile on her face.

"Come on Pinkie Pie, we will help you finish looking around." Twilight said with a sigh.

Meanwhile, Rarity and Rainbow dash had just arrived at Fluttershy's house. They spotted Fluttershy not too far away standing at the edge of Everfree Forest. Rainbow Dash was glad to have someone else to talk to after having to listen to Rarity complain every step of the way about the long walk, or the dirt that was getting on her hooves, or the fact that she might start sweating and ruin her hair.

Rainbow dash bolted ahead to talk to Fluttershy much to the dismay of Rarity. "Fluttershy did you find anything?" Rainbow Dash asked as she landed next to Fluttershy.

"Eeep," Fluttershy peeped when she was startled by Rainbow Dash. "Um, I do know if it's much, but I found this." She said in her quiet voice as she pointed to a patch of grass that had been ripped up and a hoofprint in the dirt.

"That's great Fluttershy. We now know where he went." Rainbow Dash exclaimed, but then a sudden realization crossed her face. "Oh no, I have to go tell the others so they can help us search the forest" Rainbow Dash then took off to go find the others.

It didn't take her long to spot Pinkie Pie hopping down the street with Twilight and Applejack in tow behind her. Rainbow Dash dove down and landed next to the trio.

"Twilight, we believe that the unicorn we are searching for went into Everfree Forest." said Rainbow Dash.

A few minutes later, Twilight and the others gather at the edge of Everfree Forest. They then proceeded to search the forest as a group just in case anything attacked with the exception of Rainbow Dash who flew above the forest. They continued to search the forest until sunrise but to no avail. They all decided to return home and get some rest before the continued the search.

Pat's Flashback

Pat watched the TV in horror. The news reporter showed images of giant red robots killing people and putting things into the containers on their backs. He shut the TV off and turned to Nel.

"Stay here and wait for your mother. I'll be back after I help get rid of those robots." Pat said to Nel as he tossed on his black cloak and strapped his katanas onto his lower back.

Pat then ran out of the house, locked it, and then ran to where he had heard the explosion. When he arrived, everything was in chaos. People were running around trying to get away from the robots, cars and building were on fire, and numerous bodies were scattered throughout the streets. He then saw a robot about to crush a woman and her baby.

The robot brought its foot down only for it to be stopped by a white shield around the mother and baby. Pat then appeared in front of it and cut the robot in two with his black sword. As the robot fell to the ground, Pat looked back at the people he saved and said, "Get out of here quick." He then lowered the shield.

Pat didn't take the time to make sure she left as he dashed away to find more of those robots. As he ran through the city though, there were very few robots. The ones he encountered he quickly dispatched like the first one. Pat knew that something wasn't right. It seemed too easy and too quiet. He rounded the next street corner and understood why.

Pat's POV

I woke up sweating in my makeshift bed which was no more than a pile of leaves. These memories were starting to get to me. I miss my old world but there was nothing I could do about it now. I just wish I could see Nel one more time.

I got out of my bed and stepped outside. I decided that I should tell all of those ponies that I actually wasn't from this world. If they wouldn't accept me in to their society or if they try to hurt me, I could always return here.

With my mind set, I grabbed my swords and started walking back the way I had come.

Narrator's POV

Twilight had just woken up from her nap. She knew it might be awhile before the others arrived to help with the search for the unicorn especially if Rarity was getting herself cleaned up from last night's search. Twilight decided to write to Princess Celestia and explain their predicament.

_Dear Princess Celestia,_

_ The black unicorn that I wrote to you earlier about has finally woken up from his coma. Pinkie Pie threw him a surprise party to cheer him up but when we surprised him, he ran away. We believe he ran into Everfree Forest. We searched all last night for him, but we could not locate him. We plan on looking for him again once everyone gathers at my house._

_ Your Faithful Student,_

_ Twilight Sparkle_

Twilight rolled up the message, sealed it, and handed it to Spike. Spike then blew his green fire on it to magically send it to Princess Celestia.

One Hour Later

Rarity finally joined the rest of the group after spending half and hour styling her hair into its normal curl.

"Well girls, time to go find that unicorn." said Twilight as she started for the forest.

Just then, a big white alicorn with pastel colored mane and tail appeared before the girls in a flash of light. "Do you mind if I join your little expedition?" she asked the girls before they could recover from their shock.

"N, No, we don't mind Princess Celestia, but what why would you want to help us?" Twilight asked after regaining her composure.

"I can't just sit around while one of my subjects is missing. I also didn't want to listen to any more politics right now." Celestia explained to Twilight.

Before Twilight could respond however, an explosive went off on the other side of town. Everypony turned and looked towards that side of town. "We need to go help those ponies before we look for that unicorn." Celestia shouted before taking to the skies with Rainbow Dash in tow. Twilight and the others ran along the streets trying to keep up.

When they arrived, there was nothing but total chaos. There was rubble and bricks from the surrounding buildings strewn through the street, but what had everyone's attention, was a crater in the center of the street. Inside the crater was not a meteor like they expected to find. Instead, there was a giant, red, metal ball-like object.

As they stepped closer to the crater, the object started to change. The object's outside opened up to allow what looked to be arms and legs extending out of it. The rest of its body then started to move around itself to form armor around its appendages while making room for the head to pop out. The metal creature then stood up and started to slowly walk towards the group while they were still stunned by what they just saw.

Pat's POV

I had just reached the edge of Everfree Forest when I heard the explosion. It sounded just like the explosion that I had heard at the beginning of the invasion of my planet. I immediate ran towards Ponyville. When I entered the town, I saw ponies running away from the side of town that had smoke coming from it. I jumped up onto the roof of a nearby building and started running across the rooftops to try to get there faster than running through the streets.

When I got there, I saw Twilight and her friends standing behind an alicorn that I did not recognize. They were all backing away from a crater in the ground. I looked into the crater to see my worst nightmare come to life. It was one of the robots that attacked my world.

I raised my right hoof and summoned a spear of dark energy above it. I then hurled it at the robot.

Narrator's POV

Celestia, Twilight, and the other were slowly backing of from the creature. They had no idea what it capable of or what it wanted. All of a sudden, a black spear pierced the chest of the creature. A moment later, the spear exploded which instantly destroyed the creature.

Everypony looked up to see the unicorn they had been looking for. He had a very serious expression on his face as he turned towards them. He looked them over for a moment then sighed and his expression softened. He then did something that no one expected. He said, "I guess I owe you all an explanation and an apology."


	3. Chapter 3

Narrator's POV

Everypony looked at the black unicorn in shock jumped down from the roof with swords in his mouth and walked up to them. Not just because he had effortlessly destroyed the creature that had been walking towards them, but he just spoke.

"Wait one minute. You have been able to speak this entire time?" Rainbow Dash asked with a confused expression still on her face.

Pat set his katanas down and answered, "Yes."

Twilight then stepped forward and asked, "Why didn't you tell us sooner that you could talk?"

"I knew that if you knew that I could talk, you would be constantly asking me questions about my past, especially you Twilight." Pat said while looking directly at Twilight. "But, I don't think that matters now that my past has caught up to me."

Princess Celestia looked over at Twilight and the others with a confused look on her face and asked, "What made you think that he couldn't speak?"

"He was awake for five days, yet he never uttered a single word." Twilight explained.

"Ok, that makes since." Celestia said. She then turned to Pat and asked, "What is your name?"

Pat thought for a minute and then answered, "You can call me Shadow."

"Welcome to Equestria Shadow. I am Princess Celestia, but you can call me Celestia. Now, would you be so kind as to tell us your real name." Celestia said with amusement evident on her face.

Shadow was shocked by this. Not only was he talking to a princess, but she knew Shadow wasn't his real name. "I don't think my real name applies to me anymore." Shadow said with a hint of sorrow in his voice.

"Well, why not?" Twilight asked.

"It's because I'm, um, I'm…" Shadow started while starting to get nervous from what he was about to tell them and from being in the spotlight for this long. "I'm not from this world. I wasn't a pony until that day."

"Not from this world? Not a pony? What in tarnation are ya talkin about?" Applejack asked Shadow.

"I'll explain that in a moment, but first, I don't believe I've met you three before. I already know Twilight, Fluttershy, and Pinkie Pie. Would you mind introducing yourselves?" Shadow asked.

"Oh, sorry about that. Well, ah'm Applejack. This here is Rarity, and that is Rainbow Dash." Applejack said pointing to each of them in turn.

"Well now that that's cleared up, I can start explaining things. First of all, that robot over there, or what's left of it, is the first of many that is going to be invading your planet. From what I've seen, we might have twenty minutes before the rest follow it." Shadow started to explain.

"Hold on, what is a robot?" Rainbow Dash asked with a confused expression on her face.

Shadow sighed and then explained, "Robot are a beings made of interlocking pieces of metal that use the power of electricity to function. They have no feelings and will follow any order given to them by their leader."

"Uhg, that makes my head hurt even more. Can you please explain in a way that I can understand?" Rainbow Dash asked while holding her head.

"Put simply, they are not alive, they have no feelings, and they are made of metal. Just smash them when you see them." Shadow said as simply as he could.

"I think I understand." Rainbow Dash said still a little confused.

"Well that's good enough for now. Now as I was saying." Pat then started to tell them everything that happened during his last day on Earth. He told them about the park, about Nel, about the attack on the city, and finally about what happened after he rounded that fated corner.

Shadow's Flashback

I rounded the next street corner and found out why I had met so little opposition on the way there. Standing in the street were hundreds of those robots. They looked to be guarding something in a cage at the center of all of them. I took a closer look and to my horror, it was my friends Ebony and Ivory.

Ebony is a small, black, male dragon while Ivory is a small, white, female one. I had found them lying on the side of the road with very severe injuries. I treated their wounds, but when they woke up, they had no idea where they were from or how they gotten those injuries. I decided to take care of them from that day on. After a few months, they decided I was trustworthy enough to be given the powers that I still use to this day.

The robots not only had them penned up, but they were also being tortured. It was the last straw. I pulled my other katana from its sheath then flipped them so that the back of the blade rested along my forearms. Then I charged straight into the middle of them. I slashed left and right dodging every punch or kick a robot tried to do.

After a few minutes of fighting however, I was starting to get tired. I had destroyed about fifty of the robots but there seemed to be no end to them. Every time I struck one down another would take its place. Fighting like this would only get me killed. I had to get some distance between m and them so that I could use some magic.

One of the robots tried to punch me and I quickly sidestepped it. It was my chance. I hopped up on its shoulder and using it like a springboard, I jumped as high as I could into the air. Before I could fall back down into the hoard of robots, I created a small white barrier beneath my feet to keep me in the air. Thanks to that maneuver, I was standing about fifteen feet above the robots.

I then raised both my hands above my head and closed my eyes. I focused every bit of power I had. My eyes shot open and a spear of black energy appeared, and then another, and another until I had hundreds of spears floating above the robots. I let my hands fall and with them every spear fell down like a volley of arrows. Before the spears hit, I raised a white barrio around Ebony and Ivory. The spears pierced armor, severed limbs, and pinned robots to the ground. Any robot that survived that was destroyed as the spears exploded sending shrapnel in every direction. Not a single robot escaped.

I fell to one knee and started coughing up blood. It seems as though I had overexerted myself. I released both barriers and fell to the ground. The impact jarred my bones. I laid there for a minute before enough strength returned so that I could walk. I slowly walked over to Ebony and Ivory.

When I arrived, I raised my sword and said, "Duck."

They both dropped to the bottom of their cage and proceeded to slice the top off of it. The then flew up and greeted me in unison, "Thank you so much Pat. I don't know what we would have done if you hadn't shown up."

"Why didn't you just break open the cage from the inside?" I asked.

"There was something on it that was draining our strength. We could barely move inside of it let alone break it open." They answered in unison once again.

"Oh, Ok then. Why don't you two go home to Nel and recover while I search the streets for more robots." I said.

"Ok." They said in unison.

As they started to leave, we started to hear a loud buzzing sound. We all looked around but didn't see the source of the noise.

Ebony and Ivory then shouted, "Up there," as they pointed towards the sky.

I looked up to find a giant floating ship coming out of one of the clouds. The bottom of the ship was open and sticking out of it was a giant cannon. The cannon was drawing in all of energy around it to form a yellow ball of energy. An instant later, the cannon fired a beam of yellow energy straight at us.

I felt a sudden rush of energy as my adrenaline kicked in. I erected the most powerful barrier I could and poured every last once of energy into it. I yelled at Ebony and Ivory. "Get out of here! I don't know how much longer I can hold it back."

I fell to one knee and started to cough up more blood. I looked up and saw that my barrier was cracking. I had to keep it up long enough for Ebony and Ivory to escape.

My barrier broke. I had no time to dodge and even if I did I had no energy to do so. I just prayed that they got out in time. Right before the blast hit me though, Ebony and Ivory flew in front of it to protect me. All three of us were engulfed in the blast and I blacked out.

Narrator's POV

"The next thing I knew, I woke up in a hospital bed with a pink face in front of mine." Shadow said as he concluded his story and looked over at Pinkie Pie who started to giggle.

Everypony was speechless. They just sat there and stared at Shadow.

Rainbow Dash was the first one to speak up. "Wow, you are so cool. You destroyed hundreds of those things in a single blow. You did end up losing though, but that was awesome."

"I've wasted enough time telling about my past. We need to get prepared for the invasion." Shadow said as he looked towards the sky trying to see any hint of the invaders.

"You're right, I need to head back to Canterlot to inform Luna about the invasion and to get the Elements of Harmony out of storage." Celestia said before disappearing in a flash of magic.

Shadow was a little confused at this and turned to Twilight for explanation.

Twilight noticed this and explained, "The Elements of Harmony are magical necklaces that contain vast amounts of power, but the can only be wielded by ponies that embody each special element. There are six in total which are honesty, loyalty, laughter, generosity, kindness, and magic. As it so happens we are the Elements of Harmony." Twilight said as she pointed to everypony there except Shadow. "Applejack represents honesty, Rainbow Dash is loyalty, Pinkie Pie is laughter, Rarity is generosity, Fluttershy is kindness, and I represent magic."

"That a lot to take in at once but I get it. You all have some great power because at your core, you are inherently good." Shadow said when he understood.

"Pretty much." Said Rainbow Dash as she stepped next to Twilight.

"Now that that is cleared up, do you have any ideas on how we should prepare ourselves for the upcoming battle?" Twilight asked Shadow as the other started to gather around.

"I do actually. The robots that we will be facing have no emotions and only follow their leader's orders so do even try to persuade them to stop. Do not show them any mercy unless you want to die. Now, the first problem lies in their armor. It is strong enough to withstand most attack so when need to hit them hard enough to break their armor, or we need something sharp enough to pierce it." Shadow started to explain.

"How sharp exactly?" Rarity asked.

"Very sharp. Any kind of weapon needs to be metal to withstand the impact of fighting and as sharp as my own two katanas." Shadow answered as he pulled one of his katanas from its sheath with is mouth.

Applejack then took a step forward and touched the blade lightly with her hoof only for it to effortlessly slice her. "Ow, that there blade is mighty sharp. Ah don't think we could even come close to making somethin' that sharp."

Fluttershy walked over to Applejack to treat his wound while Rarity piped up, "What about gemstones?"

Shadow thought for a moment and said, "If you can throw them hard enough, they should work just fine." This got a smile out of Rarity.

"Other than that, we will have to turn to some alternatives. We can either aim for the exposed joints to disable them, or throw something extremely sticky into it to gum up the engines." Shadow said as he continued his explanation. "I will let one of you take one of my katanas into battle since I can only use one now."

"Well what stopping you from using both?" Twilight asked curiously.

I can only hold one in my mouth and it is too awkward to move around on just my back hooves in this body." Shadow explained.

"Oh that's right." Twilight said while facehoofing. "I forgot you don't know any of our magic." Twilight then turned towards Shadow's katanas and said, "Watch this."

Twilight horn started to glow a light purple and soon after, so did both of Shadow's katanas. Then they started to float up into the air next to Twilight. She smiled and then sent both of them into a nearby tree. She looked back at Shadow and said, "See, it's easy for us unicorns. I will show you how once we are prepared."

Twilight walked up to the girls and said, "We know what we are dealing with now so go get whatever you need." After she said this, everypony except Twilight, Pinkie Pie, and Shadow left.

Pinkie Pie then hopped up to Shadow and said. "So why did you run away from my party? Was it because you don't like surprises or is it because you don't like parties. Oh, maybe it's because you you don't like surprise parties, or maybe it's…." Pinkie Pie couldn't finish this as Twilight shoved a hoof into Pinkie Pie's mouth.

"I'm a little curious about that as well. Care to explain why you ran." Twilight asked with some concern in her voice.

"That's simple. It's because I am deathly afraid of being around a bunch of ponies I don't know." Shadow explained.

"But you seemed just fine around the seven of us." Twilight protested.

"That's because I already knew you, Pinkie Pie, and Fluttershy. So there were only four ponies that I didn't know. That is only enough to get me slightly nervous." Shadow countered.

Pinkie Pie looked at him for a minute and then smiled and said, "Ok, I going to go making some jelly filled cupcakes now." She then proceeded to hop of into town. Shadow then turned to Twilight with a confused look on his face.

"She's always like that so get used to it. She is also one of Ponyville's bakers. I believe she is going to use the cupcakes to gum up the engines like you suggested, but only if she doesn't eat them all first." Twilight explained. "I have to go prepare as well so good bye for now." With that, she ran off leaving Shadow to mull over his thoughts.

Rarity's House

Rarity was busy collecting all the gemstones she had to use in the upcoming battle. She was storing them in the ornate saddlebags she had on her back. Rarity had just finished getting the last of the gems from her emergency stash when Twilight barged in.

"Did you need something from me darling?" Rarity asked.

"Yes, can you modify this saddle so that it can hold Shadow katanas while they aren't in use?" Twilight asked.

"I'm afraid I can't. That saddle is just too atrocious to been seen on Shadow's back. I will make him a personal saddle that will highlight his features. It will be absolutely marvelous." Rarity said while looking at the plain saddle Twilight had with her.

"Rarity, we don't have time for this. We have no idea when those things will be back." Twilight fumed.

"Don't worry darling, it won't take me long. You go get ready and I'll meet up with you later." Rarity said.

"Rarity, we don't…" Twilight started but only to be interrupted.

"The longer you sit here and argue with me, the longer it is going to take. So can you leave me to my work?" Rarity said while sorting through different materials and leathers.

"Fine, but don't take too long." Twilight said before leaving.

The Crater

Shadow had only been waiting for a few minutes before Applejack and Fluttershy arrived. Applejack was wearing a plain saddle filled to the brim with apples while Fluttershy was carrying first aid supplies in hers. Before they could start a conversation, Twilight came back.

"Shadow, how about we start on your magic training while we wait on the others?" Twilight asked.

"Ok and thank you." Shadow replied.

"You are welcome. Now, this spell is pretty easy to learn. The first step is to concentrate on what you want to move. Then you visualize it moving in the direction you want to move it. It's as simple as that" Twilight explained while pulling the katanas out of the tree with magic. "Moving multiple objects is just a little trickier as you have to concentrate on more than one thing at a time. Now you try." She said as she set the katanas in front of Shadow.

Shadow then tried to concentrate on a katana to get it to levitate. He managed to make it wiggle before his concentration broke. He tried again and again but he couldn't get it to move any more than on his first try. By his tenth try, both Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie had arrived. Rainbow Dash had nothing more than what she had when she left but Pinkie Pie had brought an entire cartful of cupcakes along with a cannon.

Shadow paid them no mind as he tried to levitate the katana once again only to fail. It was then that Twilight noticed the symbol on Shadow's hind end.

"What kind of cutie mark is that?" Twilight asked only to get a confused look from Shadow.

"A what?" He asked Twilight.

"A cutie mark. It's the symbol on our flanks that shows others our special talents." Twilight explained after remembering that he wasn't always a pony. She turned and pointed to her own cutie mark. "See, mine is six-pointed pink star surrounded by five white stars. It shows that I have a special affinity for magic. But I have never seen one quite like yours."

Shadow looked at her cutie mark and then turned to look at his. He recognized it easily. It was a ying-yang that had a white outline to make it stand out against his black coat. He then turned and explained to Twilight, "That is a ying-yang. It is a symbol that means balance between two opposing forces that can't exist without each other such as light and dark."

Twilight took in this new information and thought for a moment before saying, "So your special talent is your ability to use both light and dark magic, correct?"

"I believe so." Shadow said before turning back to his katanas to try to move them again. He failed yet again, but then his had a sudden realization. His special talent is balance between two things, not one.

Shadow looked back at his katanas. Maybe his problem was that he was going against his own nature while trying to move just one. If anything, it was worth a shot.

Shadow concentrated once more, but this time on both of his katanas. His horn started to glow black and white. In response, his katanas started to glow the same color. Then, as one, both of his katanas lifted off of the ground with ease.

Shadow was overjoyed.

First of all, I would like to personally thank both TheRavingFangirl and the monkey ninja for their support of my story.

What will happen during the invasion?  
Who's lives will be lost?  
What plot twists am I going to be throwing in next time?  
Find out in my next chapter.


	4. Chapter 4

Narrator's POV

Shadow was finally able to control both of his katanas without touching them. He was happy that he wouldn't have to give up one of his katanas. Shadow then took a look around him. He saw that everypony but Rarity and Celestia had returned. The ones that were there were talking about random things like the Running of the Leaves, what to throw a party for next, and whose birthdays are getting near.

He noticed that they had brought vastly differing supplies with them. Applejack had apples, Fluttershy had medical supplies, and Pinkie Pie had brought cupcakes and a cannon. He resisted the urge to ask about it because he knew from previous experiences that Pinkie Pie would talk his ears off about it. On the other hand, Twilight and Rainbow Dash hadn't brought anything back.

Shadow then looked towards the sky. Judging by where the sun was, at least an hour had passed since he had started trying to learn the levitate spell. He turned to Twilight and asked, "What could be taking Rarity and Celestia so long?"

"Knowing Celestia, she is in the middle of a long debate about what to do about the robots. Rarity is probably still working on that special project of hers." Twilight answered.

"What special project?" Shadow asked curiously.

Twilight smiley and said teasingly, "You'll see," and then she started giggling.

Shadow was annoyed with this answer, but he probably couldn't get a better answer out of her.

"The robots should have attack by now, yet I haven't seen any sign of them. I'm starting to get worried." Shadow said with concern in his voice.

"I'll go see what's keeping Celestia." Twilight said as her horn started to glow purple.

"Wait!" Shadow exclaimed. "Let me go with you."

Twilight looked at him with a fearful expression, "I don't think that would be wise. The amount of energy it would take to send both of us round trip, could end up being disastrous during the invasion."

"You don't need to teleport me there. Just point me in the right direction and I'll go there myself." Shadow explained.

"Oh, Celestia is in Canterlot which is that way at the base of the mountain. Let's meet up in front of the castle," Twilight said while pointing to a faraway mountain range.

"Ok, see you there." Shadow said as he turned away and jumped into the air only to disappear as though he jumped through an invisible doorway.

Twilight looked at where he used to be with a shocked look on her face. "I'll have to ask him about that later," she said to no one in particular. "Maybe that's how Pinkie Pie pops out of nowhere when no one is looking." Twilight then proceeded to teleport to Canterlot.

Pinkie Pie turned around to ask Shadow if he would like to go to another party only to find that both him and Twilight were gone. "I wonder where they went. Oh well, I'll ask Shadow later." She then turned back to the group and asked, "Applejack, want to hear a funny joke?"

Canterlot

Twilight appeared in front of the castle only to see the doors blown of their hinges.

"What the?" Twilight said to what lay before her. She then heard someone shout, "Move!" Then there was a loud crash behind her. She turned around and jumped back into the doorway.

In front of her was one of the robots. It was recoiling from its attack being blocked by a white barrier. It then exploded in a flash of black energy. Shadow walked through its remains with a sad look on his face. "They started the invasion and by the looks of it, they've been here for a while," said to Twilight. "Go check on the Princesses while I take care of things out her."

It took her a moment to register what Shadow said. Once she did she nodded and ran into the castle. Twilight ran as fast as she could making her way to the one place she thought the Princesses would go, the throne room. On her way there, she found many of the robots lying in ruin upon the floor. She feared what she would find up ahead.

Shadow POV

After saving Twilight from the robot, I had ran around town looking for more. No matter how hard I looked though, I could not find any, nor could I find any bodies, pony or robot. I started to get an uneasy feeling. Either this attack was a distraction or they had all gathered somewhere that wasn't in plain view. "The castle!" I exclaimed before turning around and running back there.

I entered the castle and looked around cautiously. I prayed they were here instead of the alternative. I kept going, looking for any signs of battle. I found it not too long after. At the entrance to one of the hallway I saw the severed hand of a robot. I ran over and peered down the hallway. Sure enough, there was more destroyed robot in that hallway.

I took off down the hallway following the remains of robots. It didn't take me long to catch up to them. I rounded the corner and almost ran face first into one of their backs. I backed away and readied myself to fight back. It was then that I noticed that the robots were being held back by a three skilled ponies in golden armor carrying swords in their mouths. By the looks on their faces, they had been fighting for quite some time and they were tiring fast.

I regretted not bringing either of my katanas so I raised my hoof and summoned one of my spears. I then launched it into the center of the robots and let it explode. It destroyed the robot it had initially struck and injured the others around it. Most of the robots turned around to see what happened. Both the soldiers and I, using a second spear, took this chance to destroy the rest of them before they could recover.

"Thanks for your help. I doubt we could have held up much longer if you hadn't shown up." One of the soldiers said while struggling for breath.

"Are there any more robots in the castle?" I asked them. They just shook their heads. I then continued, "Then let's go check on the princesses and Twilight."

The royal guardponies, who I just saved and learned who they were, led me to the throne room. Standing outside of it were twenty more guardponies. They let me through without saying anything. The others stayed behind to catch their breaths and to give their report on the situations.

Jammed inside were hundreds of ponies, some looked like they were royalty, other looked like merchants, and a few looked like they didn't belong. They were all yelling at each other and complaining about how there was not enough space around them. After looking over everyone there, I spotted Celestia and Twilight talking to a dark blue alicorn with a mane and tail that looked like the night sky. That must be Princess Luna.

I tried squeezed through the crowd but I couldn't get through. With the frustration getting to me, I jumped into the air and disappeared, just to reappear next to Twilight.

"Well, when Shadow gets here, he can…." Twilight started.

"I'm right here." I said startling a yelp out of Twilight.

Twilight turned around a glared at me, "Don't do that."

"Do what?" I said with a smile on my face.

"Appear out of thin air right behind me, that's what." Twilight said with a hint of anger still in her voice.

"Ok, I'll try not to appear right behind you again. Not what were you saying about me?" I asked.

"We were discussing how to best fight back these robots. Do you have any ideas?" Celestia said to me.

"From what I've seen, your guardponies can handle themselves very well against multiple robots at a time. I don't believe we have to worry about fighting back. The only problems lie in getting civilians out of harm's way and finding a way to destroy their orbital laser cannon." I said with an analytic tone.

"What's an orbital laser cannon?" Twilight asked.

"It's the cannon I described during my flashback. It floats around high in the atmosphere and gathers ambient energy before releasing it in a powerful beam. I believe the one they are using harnesses solar energy, but I'm not sure." I explained.

"Ok, so we need to find a way to get rid of the cannon." The other alicorn said getting my attention.

I looked over at her and said, "You must be Princess Luna. "

"I am, but please, call me Luna. I already know who and what you are Shadow. Tia has told me all she knows about you." Luna said back to me.

"Very well, now as for your question, I believe that should be our priority after getting the civilians to safety." I answered. "I know that I can hold back the cannon beam for a minute in a weakened state. I might be strong enough to deflect the blast if I'm at full strength, but I can't destroy it without leaving everypony open to attack. That is where you come into play. You need to destroy it while I stay down below to protect everypony from a blast if you are not fast enough."

"Do you know if the cannon is immune to magic?" Twilight asked.

"Based on the robots that we've fought, I highly doubt it." I answered.

"Ok, but how do we find it?" Celestia asked.

I smiled, "That's the simple part. They will target the greatest threats to them with it."

"What makes you so sure?" Luna asked me.

"It is a very basic tactic. You use weakest units to try get rid of the majority of the enemy then you bring out your most powerful units to take care of the rest. In this case they are using robots to kill the civilians, and then they will overwhelm the rest of us with their greater numbers. Finally, wherever they are losing, they will use the cannon to finish us off." I explained with my expression getting grimmer as I talked.

"That seems very barbaric." Luna said in horror.

I looked at her and said, "That may be, but it is also very effective. That tactic is how they defeated me. The robots wore me down, and then the laser tried to finish me off. I'm lucky to be alive."

"I'm not so sure luck had anything to do with it." Twilight said.

I gave her a confused look and asked, "What do you mean?"

"Well, I've been thinking about all that you told us and I have been trying to figure out why you were sent here and why you are a pony now. I have a possible explanation for it." Twilight explained.

After a minute a silence, I said impatiently, "Well, don't keep us waiting."

"It is possible that Ebony and Ivory were originally from here on Equestria. If that's the case, then when they protected you from the laser, their magic may have changed you and sent you here. Even if they didn't know where here was, some subconscious part of them knew. This could also explain why your eyes look like a dragon's." Twilight explained.

"That makes sense. They are the ones that taught me the spatial slip." I said getting a curious glance out of the others.

"Spatial slip? Is that how you teleported here? I've been meaning to ask how you do that." Twilight asked.

"Yes, it is. The special slip allows me to compress space between two points and move between them as if they were right next to each other. The drawbacks are that I have to know what direction I need to go and I have to be moving to use it. That's why I haven't tried to go back to Earth with it. I don't know what direction Earth even is."

I said in a sad tone.

"Well, even if you can't get back to Earth, you are always welcome here with us." Celestia said to me.

Twilight continued, "You also have me and my friends in Ponyville as your new friends."

That cheered me up. "It is nice to have friends at a time like this. Speaking of which, shouldn't we go tell them what's happening."

"Your right, let's hurry and head back." Twilight said as she started charging for the spell.

I put a hoof in front of her face and said, "Hold on. Why don't we take my way back? It doesn't as much out of me as it does you. Just walk with me."

We started to walk away from the princesses as she said, "Ok, plus it will give me a chance to study how you use it."

I laughed and said, "Well you already missed that chance."

"What?" She said only to realize that we were already back in Ponyville. "When did you, oh never mind. You will just have to show me how to do that later."

"I will, after we win this war." I said.

Narrator's POV

Pinkie Pie stopped talking when she heard laughter.

"What is it Pinkie Pie?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"They're back." She said as they all turned back to see Twilight and Shadow walking towards them.

Shadow looked around and said, "I see Rarity still hasn't come back from her special project. Maybe we should wait for her to get back so we only have to it once."

"I'm right here darlings." Rarity said as she came around the corner.

"It sure took you long enough to get ready, and what's this special project that you have been working on?" Shadow said.

"This," Rarity said as she handed Shadow a saddle. It was black with intricate white designs going through it. Along the edge of it were alternating black onyxes and white diamonds. At the very front of it, was a giant red ruby. "It's yours."

"It, it's beautiful. Are you sure?" Shadow asked.

Rarity smiled and said, "Of course. I made it just for you. It highlights your colors perfectly, and it brings out the color of your eyes. At the request of Twilight, I added straps to the sides so that you can carry your swords everywhere you go."

"Thank you Rarity. Too bad all I have for you is bad news." Shadow said.

"Everpony can I have your attention?" Shadow said to which everypony looked at him. "The invasion has already begun."

Thank you American-agent12, I see your point, but that is not what i'm trying to portray in my story.

Not much to say this time around.  
Everything seems to have been revealed.  
Until next time.


	5. Chapter 5

**Important: I have recently got a new job, so i may not be able to post as often. I will still try to stick to my schedule of one update every 3 days.**

Narrator's POV

"Wait, it's already started." Rainbow Dash blurted out, "We need to go help right now." She tried to fly away but was stopped in midair by Twilight's magic.

"Would you please quit doing that?" Rainbow Dash said clearly annoyed.

Twilight ignored her question and asked, "Do you even have any idea where you are going?"

"No." Rainbow Dash said guiltily.

"Then sit down and listen to what we have to say." Twilight said as she lowered Rainbow Dash to the ground and released her magic.

Over the next ten minutes, Twilight and Shadow took turns explaining what happened in Canterlot.

"Well now that we explained that, I need a map." Shadow said confusing everypony.

"What would you need with a map?" Rarity asked.

Shadow sighed and explained, "I need a map so that I can see likely places that the robots would attack. Then I can go to each of those places and see if they are currently under attack."

"Ah still don't understand why ya need this map, but ah guess ya can have it." Applejack said handing Shadow a map of Equestria.

"Thanks, I'll be back in five minutes, ten tops." Shadow said before turning and disappearing.

"How did he do that?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"He tried to explain it to me, but I still don't understand how it works. All I know is that it happens instantly. He doesn't even have to concentrate on it as far as I can tell. We were walking and talking and then we were in Ponyville. No flash of magic." Twilight explained to the best of her ability.

Applejack looked over and said, "That sounds an awful lot like a certain pink pony we all know."

"Speaking of which, why hasn't Pinkie Pie been talking?" Twilight asked.

"Hmm, did somepony say something to me?" Pinkie Pie asked finally talking again.

"Why haven't you been talking?" Twilight asked.

Pinkie Pie looked at Twilight and asked, "I've been making wishes on all the shooting stars."

Twilight sighed and said, "Pinkie Pie, it is midday, the chances of you seeing a shooting let only multiple, are extremely unlikely."

"That can't be right. I can see a lot of them right over there." Pinkie Pie said pointing at the sky. "What are you going to wish for Twilight? I wished for this war to be over soon so that we can throw a big party. I also wished for…." Pinkie Pie rambled on until Twilight shoved a hoof in her mouth.

"Pinkie Pie, those are not shooting stars, those are the robots invading." Twilight said, but screaming the last part.

"Oh, those meanies tricked me. Let's go teach them not to trick me." Pinkie Pie said angrily.

"Well, you were the only one who thought they were shooting stars. I don't think they were trying to trick us." Rainbow Dash said, "But I agree. Let's go smash some robots."

"Hold on girls. I need to send Shadow a message, then we will go." Twilight said as she started to charge her magic.

"That's not necessary. I already know." Shadow said right behind Twilight having appeared just a moment before.

"Ahh," Twilight screamed, but it was quickly changed to anger, "I thought I told you never to do that again."

"Sorry, I forgot, but really should go help." Shadow apologized.

Twilight accepted his apology and said, "Let's go girls. Oh, and Shadow."

"You did that on purpose." Shadow accused Twilight.

"I know." Twilight said with a mischievous smile.

They set out with their gear in check to go to battle.

Ten miles outside of Ponyville

Robots were gathering in a valley in preparation for the assault on Equestria. They were lining up rank and file into multiple groups of about a hundred. Up on a nearby hilltop, seven ponies were watching what was happening.

"They're planning to assault multiple cities at once to try to thin our fighters." Shadow whispered.

"How do you know?" Rainbow Dash asked.

Shadow looked at her and whispered, "Just trust me, I can explain after we win."

"Ok, but I will hold you to it." Rainbow Dash whispered back.

"It's done." Twilight whispered as she walked up.

Shadow gave her a curious look.

"I sent a message to Celestia that told her where we are and what was happening." Twilight explained quietly.

"Ok, I hope she shows up with reinforcements soon. This is going to be a very tough fight." Shadow whispered. "Alright, it's time to go fight."

"Hold on a minute darling, can we enjoy the peace and quiet for just a moment longer?" Rarity pleaded.

"Unfortunately no, ever moment we waste is a moment they could start to march out. We will go as soon as I untie Pinkie Pie." Shadow said as he walked down the hill to Pinkie Pie who was bound and gagged and obviously pissed off.

Shadow looked at her and said, "I'm going to untie you now, but you must promise me to stay quiet until we attack the robots, ok?" Pinkie Pie nodded. "You can vent your anger on the robots, and then after we win, I will come to one of your parties."

Shadow untied her and she jumped on top of him. Pinkie Pie said in a very low and angry voice, "Don't you ever do that to me again or else you'll be sorry."

Shadow was scared of her, even more scared than when they surprised him at Twilight's house, but he wouldn't run, not with the enemy that close. "When we win this, I will have no reason to ever do that to you. Now let's go smash some robots." He said to her.

Pinkie Pie walked up the hill to the others, but never said anything else. Shadow followed soon after but kept his distance from her. "Are you guys ready?" Shadow asked.

They all nodded in agreement. "Let's destroy as many as we can before they know what's happening." With that Shadow jumped and vanished from sight.

Pinkie Pie ran over to her cannon which she had stuffed full of her jelly filled cupcakes. She lowered the barrel of it, took aim at the nearest battalion of robots, and fired. The cupcakes rained down upon them like a volley up arrows. Most of the robots in that battalion were knocked down and covered with the purple goo. Some tried to stand up only to find out that it was a futile effort. Others tried to cut where was sticking but it didn't work either.

"That ain't no normal jelly. Pinkie pie, what did ya put in that jelly." Applejack yelled as she neared the bottom of the hill.

"Lots of glue and quick dry cement," she said with a huge grin.

Applejack stopped in his tracks and looked at her with a shocked expression before turning and towards the robots.

Meanwhile Twilight was casting spell after spell at the robots. She tried setting them on fire, but it didn't work. She tried launching rocks at them, but they just bounced off their armor. She even tried smashing them into each other, but they would get right back up and start running at her again. She heard loud footsteps behind her.

Twilight turned just to see a robot about to bring its arm down on top of her. She closed her eyes and waited for it to end, but it never did. She opened her eyes to see it laying in pieces right in front of her.

"You really should stay aware of your surroundings. I might not always be here to save you." Shadow said standing to her side.

"It's no use. I can't even scratch their armor, let alone destroy one." Twilight said feeling useless all of a sudden.

"Weren't you listening to the speech I gave about fighting them? If you can't beat their armor, aim for the joints. It is the weakest part of any design. You may not destroy them, but they won't be able to do anything else." Shadow said before disappearing.

Twilight had new determination. She levitated another stone and launched it at the nearest robot. Instead of aiming for the chest, she hit its unprotected shoulder. It crumpled under the impact, leaving the arm useless to the robot. She smiled; she wasn't so useless after all.

Meanwhile, Rarity was using her magic to fling gems at the robots. Most of them couldn't penetrate their armor, but it didn't matter as she was aiming for their joints. The gems sliced through them easily enough causing the limbs to become useless if they weren't completely severed.

Applejack was fighting right next to her, keeping the robot from attacking her back. Applejack bucked robot after robot putting holes in their armor and crippling joints. The pile of robot bodies in front of her was growing taller with each robot that she smashed. They became a virtual wall in front of her, shielding them from some of the battle.

Up above the battlefield, Rainbow Dash was hovering for a moment to catch her breath. She had been diving into the battle and picking up robots. She would then fly up high above the battle and release them, letting gravity do the rest. She tried to drop them on top of other robots to inflict the most damage. She would then rest and search the sky for the ship that carried the laser cannon. She didn't see it anywhere, so she went on another dive run.

Standing next to Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy watched the battle with mixed emotions. On one hoof, she was horrified at the violence she was witnessing, but on the other hoof, she hated the robots for what they were trying to do. She would not participate however; she would only treat her friends' injuries. She couldn't bring herself to do the violent acts that she was seeing, but neither would she stop them.

Standing right next to her was Shadow. He wanted to be down there fighting right alongside them, but he needed to conserve his energy if their plan was going to work. He would only interfere if one of them was in mortal danger just like Twilight had been. He glanced up to Rainbow Dash to see if she had spotted the ship. She shook her head and dived back into battle. He looked back to the others and saw that they were starting to struggle.

Twilight and Rarity were tired from all the magic they had used. Applejack was tiring fast, and Rainbow Dash was taking longer and longer to recover after a diving run. Next to him, Pinkie Pie was complaining about the fact that she was almost out of special cupcakes. If this kept up much longer, He would have to step in and help, even if it caused their plans to fail, he couldn't let them die here.

There was a flash of light behind Shadow. He turned around to see Luna and Celestia and about fifty of their guards behind them. "They're starting to struggle. Hurry up." Shadow said coldly before looking back to the battle.

The princesses looked at him, and then to each other shrugged. They gave the order to charge and then flew up to Shadow. "Can you give us an update on the battle?" Celestia asked.

"Only about a hundred and fifty robots are left out of the initial four hundred. Everyone was struggling from fatigue of some sort due to the length of the battle. Pinkie Pie is almost out of ammunition. So far, no one has been seriously hurt. There has been no sign of the laser cannon or its ship." Shadow said without taking his eyes off the battle.

Something was obviously bothering him but Celestia decided that it could wait. She looked back to the battle to see that Luna was directing the guards to provide diversion and cover so that Twilight, Rarity, and Applejack could get out safely.

Rainbow Dash quit with the dives to put all of attention towards finding the ship. She spotted a small cloud nearby and decided to rest there while keeping a look out.

Down below, the guards made quick work of the last of the robots.

Shadow's POV

I watched as the last of the robots fell before a royal guard member. Something wasn't right. It was all too easy, and the laser cannon still had not shown up. It was bugging me more than one of Pinkie Pie's rambling sessions. I looked through the sky, and all that was there were a couple of clouds.

I had a sudden flashback of the last time he had seen it. It had come out of one of the clouds before firing. I snapped back to reality as a loud buzzing reverberated through the air. I looked up in horror. The ship had been here the entire time hiding in the clouds.

"Everypony get down!" I screamed. They didn't think twice as they all ran for cover.

I stood my ground and summoned every bit of energy I had. I waited for the cannon to fire. Every agonizing second I waited felt like an hour. I waited and waited for it to fire, but it didn't. I glanced to where everypony was hiding. They looked as confused as I was.

Then I heard it. The cannon had fired at me when I looked away. I looked back and created the most powerful shield I could. The beam was stopped, but I wasn't strong enough to deflect it.

"Now! Destroy it!" I yelled at the others.

Narrator's POV

Luna and Celestia were the first to react. They both took to the skies and fired beams of magic at the ship. The magic dissipated as it hit the ship, not even leaving a scratch. They looked at each other with worried expressions.

"What now Tia?" Luna asked.

"I don't know Luna." Celestia replied.

"Ahh." Shadow screamed.

"What's wrong Shadow?" Celestia asked clearly concerned.

"It got even more powerful. Destroy it quickly." Shadow said while panting.

"But we can't use our magic against it. It just disappears on contact." Luna protested.

Celestia expression changed to one of horror as she realized what this could mean. "Luna, it absorbed our magic. That's why it got even more powerful."

By now, Twilight and her friends realized what was happening.

"Rainbow Dash, can you destroy it with a sonic rainboom?" Twilight asked.

"Rainbow Dash shook her head and said. "No, it is too high in the air. I couldn't gain enough speed before I passed it."

"But could you if you gained enough speed?" Twilight asked.

Rainbow Dash looked at her confused and said, "Yes, I could but I don't see where you are going with this."

"Alright everypony, listen to me." Twilight said to which everypony except Shadow looked at her. "We need to help Shadow get rid of that beam. Let's combine our magic and give it to Shadow."

"How is that going to help us destroy the cannon?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"Just trust me." Twilight said.

"If you are going to do that, then you'll need these." Celestia said as she levitated five necklaces and a tiara over to the group.

Twilight took the tiara and the other each took a necklace.

"Thanks, now let's help him." Twilight said before running over to Shadow.

"What are you doing?" Shadow asked in a strained voice.

"Helping you." Rarity said as she and the others arrived.

"Ok girls, get in formation." Twilight said as she stepped back from Shadow.

The others surrounded Twilight. They all closed their eyes and started to concentrate. They started to glow and float in midair mesmerizing Shadow who let the beam slip a few feet closer before he stopped it again.

Twilight's eyes then flashed open, but they weren't her natural eyes, they glowed with raw magic.

A rainbow shot out from them and hit the beam that Shadow was trying to hold back. It was soon followed by two beams of magic. One white and one black. Shadow glanced over to see that Celestia and Luna had lent their help.

Shadow's POV

The strain of holding back the beam was greatly reduced for me. I didn't know how they were doing that but I greatly appreciated it. I pushed backed against the beam with everything I had left. The others seemed to sense me doing this as they started to put more power into their attacks .The beams canceled each other out and dissipated.

"Now Rainbow Dash. Get as high as you can start to create a sonic rainboom," Twilight commanded.

"But Twilight…." Rainbow Dash started only to be interrupted.

"Just trust me and go." Twilight yelled.

Rainbow Dash flew as high as she could then started to dive back down.

Twilight turned to me and commanded, "When I give you the order, you need to teleport her right next to that ship, then get out of there."

"Ok, I have no idea what you're planning, but I'll help." I said back to her.

I looked back to Rainbow Dash who was currently diving at incredible speed. Light started to from a cone around her when Twilight shouted, "Now."

I jumped and appeared next to Rainbow Dash and grabbed her. We then teleported next to the ship, before I disappeared and reappeared next to Twilight.

I heard an explosion above me. I looked up to see and rainbow colored shockwave hit the ship that was carrying the laser cannon. The ship was destroyed instantly and parts of it rained down around us.

"What was that?" I asked.

"That, my friend, is a sonic rainboom." Twilight answered.

"Wow," was all I could say.

Author's Notes

To RaeLuva145, thank you.

Yeah, the greatest threat to ponies everywhere has been destroyed.  
The only problem is that I still have a few twists left to reveal, and the return of... I'd rather not say actually.  
See what happens next.


	6. Chapter 6

Narrator's POV

"How did she do that?" Shadow asked Twilight as he watched Rainbow Dash land.

"She gained enough speed to break the sound barrier." Twilight answered.

"Can all pegasus ponies do that?" Shadow asked.

Twilight shook her head and said, "No, Rainbow Dash is the only pony in Equestria that can do it."

"That's amazing." Shadow said in awe.

Pinkie Pie walked up to Shadow and asked, "Did we win, huh, did we, did we?"

"It looks like it." Shadow replied.

"Yah, time to go get the party started. Do forget, you said you would be there. Bye." With that, Pinkie Pie ran off leaving behind a pink blur.

"Are you sure she can't do a sonic rainboom?" Shadow asked Twilight.

"With her, you never know." Twilight said.

Rainbow Dash then walked up to Twilight and Shadow. "So, what did you think of that?"

Shadow smiled and then said, "It was amazing."

All of a sudden, there was a giant explosion behind them all. They all turned to see what had caused it when another robot climbed out of the crater it had just created, but something was different about it. Instead of the normal red armor, this one was pure white with a big black square on its chest. It raised its hand and waved the white flag it was holding.

"It looks like they are surrendering." Celestia said.

"I'm not sssurrendering, I jussst want to make a deal," said a guttural voice from the robot. Then the black square lit up to reveal a half lizard, half robot cyborg sitting on a throne.

"Ah don't care what kind of deal ya got, we ain't taking it." Applejack said back to the robot.

"Oh, but there isss where you are wrong. If you don't take the deal, I will dessstroy you all right now. But, if you want, I will give you until tomorrow at noon to ressst before I attack. I wouldn't want my fun to be too ssswift now would I. Ssso, do we have a deal?" The reptilian cyborg asked.

"Deal!" Rarity shouted before the rest could discuss it.

"Sssee you all tomorrow," the cyborg said as it left.

Twilight walked over to Rarity and yelled, "Why didn't you give us all time to talk about it before answering?"

"Because darling, I must get cleaned up and get my beauty sleep before I do anything else today." Rarity said.

"What's done is done Twilight. Let's get some rest while we have time to." Celestia said trying to comfort her.

"Umm, where am I going to sleep?" Shadow asked.

Twilight smiled and said, "You can sleep at my place. I have plenty of extra blanks and pillows for such an occasion."

"Thank you." Shadow said.

"You're welcome." Twilight said back.

"Oh, and Rarity, you can break it to Pinkie Pie that her party has to be delayed." Shadow said to Rarity.

"Why me?" Rarity asked.

"Because you didn't give us time to negotiate, and Pinkie Pie will kill me if I did anything like that to her," Shadow replied.

Later That Night at Twilight's House

"Whoa, you live in a library?"

"Yes, I spend most of my time studying here or hanging out with my friends." Twilight answered. "I'm sure you and pike will be best friends."

"Who's spike?" Shadow asked.

"My number one assistant. Spike! Oh Spike!" Twilight said but yelled the last part.

"Coming Twilight," someone said upstairs. Soon after footsteps were heard coming down the stairs. "What do you need Twilight? I was just about to fall asleep." A baby purple dragon said as he walked into view.

Shadow smiled and walked up to Spike. "Hello Spike, I'm Shadow, and it's a pleasure to meet you."

"Thank you?" Spike said in an unsure tone.

"Spike, Shadow will be staying with us until he gets a place of his own. So, can you bring down the extra pillows and blankets?" Twilight asked.

"Sure thing Twilight." Spike said before running back upstairs.

"I can already see that you like him." Twilight said to Shadow.

"I know. He reminds me of Ebony and Ivory, and I miss them so much." Shadow said before breaking down into tears.

Not sure on what to say to him, Twilight put a hoof on his shoulder on sat with him in silence. A few minutes later, Spike was back with a pile of pillows and blankets. Shadow had recomposed himself before spike had come back so the dragon had no clue of what happened.

"Here you go Shadow." Spike said pushing the stuff towards Shadow.

"Thank you Spike." Shadow replied.

"It was nothing. Now, if you don't need anything else, I'm going to sleep." Spike said before walking off.

Twilight turned to him and said, "I'm going to bed too, so get some sleep. We have a big day ahead of us."

"Good night, Twilight." Shadow said before curling up in the pile of blankets.

The Next Day at Noon on The Battlefield

"Is everypony ready?" Shadow asked as they approached the battlefield.

"Yes, we are." Twilight said answering for everypony.

Shadow, Twilight, Rarity, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, Celestia, and Luna were all just over the hill from where they had destroyed the laser ship. They marched walked over the hill to see… absolutely nothing, not even the robot parts from yesterday remained.

"Where did everything go?" Twilight asked.

"They probably took the remains to make new robots." Shadow said.

"It's noon already, where is that varmint?" Applejack asked.

"Just have patience, he will be here." Shadow said while looking towards to sky.

"What makes you so sure?" Rainbow Dash asked.

Twilight turned to Rainbow Dash and answered for Shadow, "If he's anything like Discord or Nightmare Moon, then he would rather destroy us himself."

"I don't know who they are, but you are right about him wanting to kill us." Shadow said. "Is something wrong Pinkie Pie?" he asked noticing how quite she had been.

Pinkie Pie looked at him with a pissed off expression, "You told me that this was all over, so I threw a party. Then Rarity shows up and tells me that it's not over and that I have to stop my party. The worst part is that you didn't show up at the party like you told me you would."

"First of all, I told you I thought it was over, and you ran off before the robot's leader could show up. Also, I said I would go to the party after this was over, and it is clearly not over." Shadow replied to her.

"Are you still going to come to my party?" Pinkie Pie asked.

"Yes, I will." Shadow answered.

"Make it a Pinkie Pie promise." Pinkie Pie said glaring at him.

"Ok, I Pinkie Pie promise you that I will show up to your party." Shadow said to her.

"That's not how it goes." Pinkie Pie said back.

Twilight walked over and whispered something in his ear.

"Oh, thanks Twilight." Shadow said before looking back at Pinkie Pie. "Cross my heart and hope to fly. Stick a cupcake in my eye." He said doing exactly what Twilight had told him to.

"Ok, much better." Pinkie Pie said reverting back to her cheery self.

"Aww, ssso cute. Too bad he won't be able to keep that promissse." The lizard cyborg said while stepping out from behind a nearby tree. "It'sss ssso good that you all came here. It sssavesss me the trouble of sssearching for you."

"What do you want with our planet?" Celestia asked while stepping towards him.

"That'sss sssimple, I want to dessstroy you all and take all of the resssourcesss from your planet. That'sss what I did to the lassst planet." The cyborg answered.

At that remark, Shadow launched one of his katanas at the cyborg. He easily dodged it, and it embedded in the tree next to him.

"Now, now. You wouldn't want to ssstart the fun before I'm ready now would you." The cyborg said while pulling out a small remote. He pushed a button on it and a five story version of the robots they had been fighting landed next to him. It lowered a hand towards him which he jumped into. It then raised its hand up to where its head would have been, but there was none. The cyborg climbed in and a dome closed over him.

"Now I'm ready. Ssso, who wantsss to die firssst?" The cyborg said and then started laughing maniacally.

"You destroyed my planet, killed all my friends and family, and now choose to do that to this planet as well. I will not let you harm anypony else." Shadow said in a very low emotionless voice that Nopony else heard. He looked up to the cyborg and yelled at the top of his lungs, "YOU WILL DIE!"

Shadow's POV

I ran at him, not caring anymore about safety. I just wanted him dead. I used my only katana as the other one was still stuck in the tree. I slashed and hacked wildly at its feet trying to hit any weak point in its armor, but it seemed as though he took extra precautions to ensure it couldn't be damaged.

"Ha ha ha, sssuch a futile effort. You couldn't even put a ssscratch on the paint. I made sssure of that." The cyborg said, but I ignored him.

I retreated back as one of the arms tried to smash me. Luckily, the robot was really slow do to all the added armor. As soon as the arm left, I dashed back in and started slashing some more.

"Isss that all you can do? You're nothing but a pathetic flea trying to kill a dinosaur." The cyborg said to which he laughed some more.

I retreated back again as a hand came crashing down. I summoned a black spear and launched it at his chest. It exploded on impact, but it didn't even mar the surface. Enraged I summoned a spear the size of a tree trunk and launched it as well. The result was the same.

I then resorted to the only thing I could think of. I summoned hundreds more of those tree sized spears all around him. I slammed my hoof down, and they all hit at once. He was engulfed in an explosion and I was thrown back. I stood up weakly only to fall back down and vomit up blood. I looked back to where he had been and froze.

He was still there. It hadn't been enough to destroy him, but his armor had so many dents in it, it kind of looked like a golf ball. In a few places, the armor was even cracked.

"I'm impressssed, you managed to damage my armor. I alssso recognize you now. You are the one who dessstroyed hundredsss of my minionsss on the lassst planet before I blasssted you. I am going to make you sssuffer for both of thossse reasssonsss." The cyborg said getting angrier by the second.

The robots foot moved over me and started to slowly come down. I tried to create a barrier to protect me, but it shattered as the foot touched it, not even slowing it down. The foot slowly started to crush me. I screamed out in pain for what seemed like hours and I soon passed out.

Narrator's POV

"Shadow!" Twilight screamed as the foot finally came to rest.

They had all been watched what had happened in awe of Shadow speed, ferocity, and sheer power, but that came to an abrupt end when he was crushed.

"How could you do such a heartless act?" Twilight yelled at him.

"It wasss easssy. Here, let me give you a firssst hand experience." The cyborg said as the robot took a step towards them.

"Let's give him everything we have, for Shadow." Twilight said.

Twilight and the others used the Elements of Harmony while Celestia and Luna used their own magic. They held nothing back, and the robot was hit dead center in the chest. It had to take a step back to avoid falling over.

"Not bad, but it'sss not good enough." The cyborg said while laughing at them.

"No, this can't be it. We can't lose here." Twilight said in horror at the fact that they couldn't harm him. She closed her eyes and waited for the end to come.

Shadow's POV

I opened my eyes and saw nothing but pitch black in front of me. I looked behind me and right into pure white light.

"Where am I?" I asked aloud, not expecting an answer.

"This is your subconscious." Two voices spoke back to me.

I jumped up and looked around. "Where are you?" I asked.

"Behind you." The voices said.

I spun around and my jaw dropped.

"Hello Pat, or Shadow as you now call yourself, it has been awhile." They said.

"H, how is this even possible? You're supposed to be dead." I stammered.

"Not dead, just trapped." They said.

I smiled and walked over to them. "Well, however you got here doesn't matter. I'm just so glad to see you again, Ebony and Ivory."

Yeah, His friends are back, sort of.  
Come back next time for the final chapter.


	7. Chapter 7

Shadow's POV

"We are glad to see you too." Ebony and Ivory said together. "As for how we are here, it is actually quite simple. Think back to what Twilight theorized about how you got here."

I closed my eyes and remembered everything she had told me. "Ok."

"Everything she said was true, except for the part about us not knowing. When we were hit by the laser, we remember everything from our past. We then used the last of our power, with a little extra from you, to transform you and send you here. But that kind of power had an unforeseen consequence.

We lost our bodies, and our soul went to the first safe place they could find. That was inside your subconscious. Now, we cannot escape here." They explained.

"How do you know what Twilight said to me?" I asked.

"We can see, hear, and feel whatever you do, whenever we want to." They replied.

"So, now you two are stalking me." I said jokingly.

Ebony and Ivory looked at each other before answering, "Pretty much."

"Well, at least you can't tell anybody about my personal life. But, enough about that. How do I return to consciousness?" I asked them.

"Simple, just ask us to. But first we have two more things for you." They answered. "First, which is pretty obvious, is you need to destroy that cyborg so you can prepare."

"Prepare for what?" I interrupted.

"We will explain that to you after you win. The second thing is…." They started.

Narrator's POV

Twilight still had her eyes closed when she heard it. It sounded as though somepony had just dropped a pile of bits on a metal floor. She opened her eyes and looked up at the cyborg. He had a very worried expression and several gashed had appeared on the robot's armor.

"What's happening to it?" Twilight asked only to get no verbal responses. Rainbow Dash just pointed a hoof at it. She looked back to it to see a black blur shoot across its chest with another gash forming behind it.

"WARNING. WARNING. MULTIPLE SYSTEN FAILURES DETECTED. RETREATING IS ADVISED," said a metallic voice coming from the driver's seat of the robot.

"What isss happening?" The cyborg asked clearly frustrated. "I need to get out for here."

The cyborg then pressed a few more buttons and a pair of rockets extended from its back. The rockets ignited, but fell of immediately after the black blur ran across them.

"You're not getting off this planet that easily." The blur said as it stopped in front of where the cyborg was sitting.

Hovering in front of the cyborg was a black dragon the size of a pony with dark blue spines running down his back and a pair of solid black wings flapping to keep him steady. The most noticeable things about him, however, were his dark red eyes and the horn atop his head.

"Is that Shadow?" Twilight exclaimed.

"That can't be him. Shadow is a pony, not a dragon." Rainbow Dash countered.

"I believe Twilight is right. His eyes are identical to Shadow's, and I have never seen a dragon with a unicorn horn," Celestia said as she watched the battle intensely.

The all turned back to the battle as a scream rang out around them. The dome had been torn off and the cyborg was being held upside down by an ankle.

"You will be punished for all the lives you have taken, and I will be the one to punish you." The dragon said as he raised his hand and a black spear appeared above the robot. He dropped his hand and the spear plunged into the robot, but instead of exploding like all of the others, it imploded and sucked the robot into another dimension.

"No doubt about it now, that has to be Shadow. He is the only one able to do that." Twilight said aloud.

"You won't be needing that after I'm through with you." Shadow said to the cyborg as a maniacal grin appeared on his face. "I'm going to enjoy this." He said and let the cyborg go.

The cyborg plummeted head first towards the ground only to be stopped mere inches from impact. "You really think I would let my fun end just like that." Shadow said still grinning.

"Pleassse ssspare me. I will do whatever you asssk me to, jussst don't hurt me." The cyborg said trying to cower in fear.

"Then destroy ever last robot you have." Shadow said to him as he let him fall to the ground.

"Ok, I'll do it." He said before pulling out the remote and pressing the button marked "Self Destruct." "There, all of my minionsss on gone. Now, keep your word and let me live."

"I never said that I would let you live." Shadow said pointing a claw at him.

"N, No, pleassse don't," he said as he curled into a ball and shut his eyes,

Shadow released his magic and created a barrier around the cyborg, trapping him. "I also never said that I would kill you. Honestly, what gave you that idea?" Shadow said as his expression returned to normal.

"But your sssmile, and what you sssaid…" The cyborg protested.

"All meant to scare you into doing whatever I wanted you to. If you are going to be killed for what you did, they will be the ones to decide that." Shadow said while pointing at the princesses.

Shadow then proceeded to walk over to the onlookers. As he walked towards them, his body slowly morphed back into the unicorn they all new.

"That was amazing." Rainbow Dash said when Shadow got over to them.

"I really liked watching that. It was almost as fun as being at one of my parties. But then you got squished and we were all sad. Then you changed and started winning again and that made us all happy. And then you dropped him and caught him right before he went kersplat and he wet himself." Pinkie Pie rambled on before busting out in a fit of laughter making us all smile.

"Yes, it was quite the drama if I do say so myself." Rarity chimed in.

"If I may interrupt your conversation?" Celestia asked.

"Oh, go right ahead Princess." Twilight said.

"Shadow, we would like to invite you and your new friends to come to Canterlot tomorrow for a celebration honoring you." Celestia said to Shadow.

"I don't know. I don't do so well in front of ponies I don't know." Shadow said embarrassingly.

"Don't worry about it, just come to the castle tomorrow afternoon." Celestia said reassuringly. "In the meantime, Luna and I will decide the cyborg's fate."

"Very well princesses." Shadow said letting down the barrier.

Celestia and Luna walked over to the cyborg and disappeared into a flash of light.

"Ok, Shadow, now you can explain everything." Twilight said giving him an inquisitive stare.

"Alright, but can it wait until we get back to Ponyville and get something to eat. I'm starving." Shadow said to which his stomach rumbled.

"Ok, but can we take your way back. I want another chance to study it." Twilight asked.

"Sure thing Twilight. Alright everypony walk this way." Shadow said leading the group towards Ponyville, only for all of them to disappear.

Ponyville

"Whoa, ah don't think ah could ever get used to that." Applejack said at the sudden change of scenery.

"I still don't understand how it's done, even though I've experienced it twice now." Twilight exclaimed.

Shadow chuckled at their comments, "Don't fret over it Twilight, you will catch on pretty quick. Now, where do we get something to eat?"

"I know. I know. We can all go to Sugarcube Corner." Pinkie Pie chimed in.

"Sounds like a bakery," Shadow said.

"That's because it is silly." Pinkie Pie said as she led the way.

They arrived a minute later and Pinkie Pie turned around and said, "Here we are. Now, let me make sure I have everything I need." At that she ran inside, not even bothering to turn on the lights. "Ok, come on in Shadow."

Shadow stepped inside and the lights turned on.

"SURPRISE!" everypony yelled, "Wait, where is he?"

"Well Pinkie Pie, I don't think you should try to throw him any more surprise parties." Twilight said to the sad Pinkie Pie. "You should invite him to a normal party next time."

"But, he Pinkie Pie promised me that he would come to one of my parties." Pinkie Pie said.

"It would take more than that to make me break a promise." Shadow said from behind her. "But Twilight is right, no more surprise parties for me."

"What about other parties?" Pinkie Pie asked him.

"As long as I know about them, they are fine." Shadow said.

Pinkie Pie even bigger than normal and said, "Well, let me show you around and introduce you to everypony."

"Ok, but to the snack table first." Shadow said back, and with that they walked off.

"It looks like he is starting to get over his fear." Rainbow Dash said to Twilight.

"It seems like it, but he won't be over it for tomorrow's celebration." Twilight said back.

"I was thinking about that, and I have an idea on what to do." Rainbow Dash said and then whispered her plan into Twilight's ear.

"That's perfect Rainbow Dash. I will go inform Celestia at once." Twilight said before rushing off.

By now, Pinkie Pie was introducing Shadow to everypony she could while Shadow was eating some of the cupcakes he had snagged from the table. It was clear that he was uncomfortable, but he was managing not to run away.

Later That Night

The party had disbanded after everypony helped clean up the mess. Shadow was walking down the street towards Twilight's house with five ponies in tow.

"I wonder why Twilight didn't come back to the party," Shadow said.

"Knowing her, she probably spent all this time cleaning her house or reading a book." Rarity said.

They arrived at her house a minute later. Shadow walked up to her door and knocked.

"Come in." Twilight said from inside.

They all proceeded to walk inside. Shadow could see that Rarity was right about her cleaning the entire house, but that wasn't all. She had brought out the extra pillows and used them as makeshift chairs. She also had a couple of notebooks next to her chair to take notes with.

"I guess you have been preparing to hear me explain everything." Shadow said to Twilight.

"Yes, I have been." Twilight confirmed, "Now, if you would be so kind, we can get started right now."

They all took a seat in the circle of chairs. Shadow started off by asking, "Twilight, do you have any spells that can give spirits temporary or permanent bodies?"

"Yes, why?" Twilight asked.

"I need you to manifest two spirits so that they can help me explain everything." Shadow answered.

"Do you know where they are exactly?" Twilight asked.

"Yes, they are currently trapped within my subconscious." Shadow replied.

"Well come over here so that I can cast the spell." Twilight instructed. Shadow did exactly as she said. "Now concentrate on them both and I will cast the spell."

Shadow closed his eyes and concentrated. "Ok, I'm ready."

Twilight released the spell and a flash of light blinded everypony. When it faded, there were to dragon sitting next to Shadow, one white and one black.

"What's with all the noise Twilight?" Spike said sleepily as he walked into the room. Spike stood a few feet into the room in awe at what lay before him. There were two other dragons there in the house, and these dragons actually looked friendly.

"Everypony, and Spike, I would like you to meet Ebony and Ivory." Shadow said pointing at the two. "You don't have to introduce yourselves; they know everything that has happened since I got here. So, what do you want us to explain?"

"How did you know what the robots were going to do before they did it?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"That's simple; they were using tactics that were widely known about on Earth, so it was easy to predict what they were going to do." Shadow answered, "Next question."

"How did you transform into a dragon?" Twilight asked.

This time, Ebony and Ivory answered in unison, "We merged our spirits with Shadow's to give him the strength needed to defeat that robot. The transformation was just a result of that."

"That's gonna take some gettin used to." Applejack said about how they speak.

"Any other questions?" Shadow asked.

To that, Fluttershy piped up, "Yes, can you tell us why you were in a coma, um, if that's ok with you?"

"Actually Fluttershy, I cannot. I don't have any idea why." Shadow answered.

"We do." Ebony and Ivory said, "Shadow was in a coma because his body had to recover from all of the changes it went through. That process took even longer because his body had lost all of its energy, magic, and most of his life force."

"So, transforming someone permanently takes that that much out of them?" Twilight asked.

"No, the cost of him being transformed was to give up our bodies, and it would have normally only take one day for him to recover." They answered.

"Then what exactly caused me to stay in the coma longer than normal?" Shadow asked the dragons.

"We used all of your energy to save as many people as we could from your planet, but they were suspended in a time flux so as to give you enough time to prepare for their arrival." They explained.

Shadow was in awe at this new information. "I won't be the only survivor from my planet. That is wonderful news. When will they be arriving?"

"That's the problem with time fluxes. We have no way of predicting when they will arrive." They answered.

"What is a time flux?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"A time flux a distortion in time itself that either moves slower our faster than normal. The survivors from earth are suspended in a time flux that is slowing time down." Shadow tried to explain to Rainbow Dash, but it was obvious that it wasn't working. "Think of it like this, they are being delayed on their way here."

"Oh, ok." Rainbow Dash said finally understanding.

"Any more questions?" Shadow asked once again. They just shook their heads.

"No, but I have to inform Celestia of what we learned here." Twilight said before writing a letter. "Spike, can you send this to Celestia?"

"Sure thing Twilight." Spike said taking the letter and breathing fire on it. The letter turned into ash and flew out a window.

"Are you ready for tomorrow, Shadow?" Twilight asked him.

"As ready as I'll ever be." He answered.

"Ok girls, it's time to for you to leave. We need to be ready for the celebration tomorrow." Twilight said to the others.

They all said their goodbyes and left.

"Good night Shadow, Ebony, and Ivory." Twilight and Spike said before going upstairs.

"Good night." Shadow, Ebony, and Ivory replied before the two dragons returned to Shadow's subconscious. Shadow then laid down and went to sleep.

The Next Day at Canterlot Castle

Twilight and her friends were standing next to Celestia and Luna getting the final preparations done for the celebration. In front of them, hundreds of ponies had gathered at the Princesses' request to celebrate the victory over the robot invaders.

"Do you have everything ready Twilight?" Celestia asked.

"Yes princess." Twilight answered.

Celestia turned to everypony and said, "Everypony, we need you to be absolutely silent during this celebration. My faithful student Twilight here has cast a spell over you all to prevent Shadow from seeing you. We had to do this because he is frightened of being around a lot of ponies he doesn't know. So I repeat, be absolutely silent."

"Alright Shadow, you may come in now." Luna said with a magically enhanced voice after lowering the spell the prevented eavesdropping.

Shadow walked in warily and looked around, half expecting another surprise party or a lot of ponies he didn't know. He saw nopony except the princesses, his friends, and a few guards. He regained his composure and strode confidently up to the princesses and bowed.

"You may rise Shadow." Celestia said to which Shadow rose. "For acts of bravery, strength, and kindness, and for saving all of Equestria, I present to you this necklace."

Celestia brought a necklace over to Shadow that bore a striking resemblance to the Elements of Harmony that Twilight and the others used. It was a gold medallion on a gold chain, but on the front of the medallion were gems in the shape of his cutie mark.

"This necklace was specially crafted just for you. It doesn't hold any special powers like the Elements of Harmony, but the gems in it were modified so that you can store extra magic for later use." Celestia explained.

"Thank you Princesses," Shadow said while bowing again.

"You're welcome." They said together.

"Now that the threat to Equestria is over, what do you plan to do?" Celestia asked.

"I was thinking about starting a secondary school in Ponyville to teach the survivors from Earth how to function normally in this society when they arrive." Shadow answered.

Celestia and Luna whispered to each other before Celestia answered, "That is a wonderful idea. You have our blessings on this endeavor."

"If you don't mind me asking, whatever happened to the cyborg?" Shadow asked.

"We erased his memory and banished him to the moon." Luna said with some discomfort.

Sensing this, Celestia changed the topic, "Shadow, we would like to send some construction workers with you so that we can get your new house and school finished as soon as possible."

"Thank you Princesses," Shadow said again.

Cheers erupted from behind Shadow. He turned to see hundreds of ponies behind him that weren't there earlier. He freaked and disappeared into thin air. Celestia and Luna looked at each other with concern.

"Don't worry Princesses, he will be fine." Twilight said to comfort them. Behind Twilight, her friends were all laughing at what they had just witnessed, with the exception of Fluttershy.

Two Weeks Later on The Outskirts of Ponyville

"It's finally complete." Shadow said while looking at the newly completed school.

It was a fairly small school, as he wasn't expecting to have too many survivors to appear at the same time. Shadow walked inside and looked around. There were only eight doors in the hallway. Four of the doors were classrooms, two were bathrooms, one was a cafeteria, and the last one was Shadow's personal office. Shadow entered his office and went straight to the only book in the entire room.

It was completely blank except for a small section at the top of the very first page. It read:

Human Name: Patrick

Equestria Name: Shadow

Race: Unicorn

Location: Ponyville

"Now the wait begins." Shadow said as he left to go to his new home.

**I would like to thank everypony for reading my story, and yes there will be another.**

**I need some OC's from people who are willing to give them. I will not accept any alicorns, and you must include a lot of information about them so that they can be correctly portrayed. If you want, you can also give them a human name for the book.**

**Final disclaimer: I do not own any MLP stuff other than my own OC and this story. Everything else is property of Hasbro.**


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